


I Need My Girl

by spaceprincessem



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon Universe, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-10
Updated: 2018-06-10
Packaged: 2019-05-20 10:39:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14893070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaceprincessem/pseuds/spaceprincessem
Summary: Takes place after Betty confronts her father in jail in S2E22 "Brave New World"Jughead knows Betty needs him, especially when he finds the moon shaped scars on her palms bloody and bruised. What he doesn't realize is just how much he needs her as well. Jughead and Betty find comfort in each other and wonder where they go from here.





	I Need My Girl

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing.
> 
> The title of this story is inspired by The National's song "I Need My Girl"

Can you please come over? I need you.

Jughead didn’t hesitate as he shut his laptop, grabbing his Serpent’s jacket and infamous beanie from his desk, throwing the clothing items on. Betty needed him and he wasn’t going to fail her again. A knocking at the trailer door made him pause in his step, as he hung back in the shadows of the hallways he watched his dad answer the door.

“Alice?” FP asked, somewhat surprised.

Jughead watched as his dad stepped aside and his girlfriend’s mom slowly came in. He could see tear stains on her cheeks and her normally haughty composure was all, but gone. 

“FP, I’m sorry, I just don’t know who else to turn to.” Alice said as she moved into his arms.

FP only hesitated for a moment before he wrapped his arms around her. He waited a few moments as they moved to FP’s room, the door shutting softly behind them. Jughead quickly scribbled a note and hung it on the fridge, letting his dad know he would be at Betty’s. He was out the door and on his bike, letting the cool wind wake him up. The last few days had beyond insane. From his self sacrifice brush with death, the evil deeds of Hiram Lodge, and the uncovering of the real Black Hood, Betty’s father, there had been more than enough to fill all of their nightmares. Sleeping was next to impossible, so the rush of cold air and the night sounds of Riverdale were welcoming to his tired body.

He parked just out front of Betty’s house; it was dark save for one light coming from the living room where Betty was waiting for him. Polly and the twins were surely asleep, Alice was at his place with his father, and Hal, well the Angel of Death was locked behind bars. At least there was one monster that could no longer strike fear into his small town, but he knew it was still affecting the three people who inhabited these walls. He knew she had probably just gotten back from confronting her father. That was one of the things he loved about Betty. She was so strong, probably the strongest person he had ever known.

“Juggie.” Betty said, her voice small as she opened the door for him.

“Betty.” He said with a soft smile he usually reserved for her. She fell into his embrace immediately and he held on to her tightly. 

Every hug, every kiss, every touch he had with Betty he savored. Almost dying had made every moment with her that much more important. While he had wanted to do the right thing and save his family, the Serpents, he had not only sacrificed himself, but he had said goodbye to the person he loved most. Jughead had felt guilty he wasn’t there for Betty when she had confronted her dad before he had been arrested, What if something had happened to her? She had told him what his plan was, why he had confessed. He had planned on there being no survivors. She had been the last thing on his mind before the world had gone black. He remembered being surrounded on all sides, but the words Malachai had said still rung through his head clearly.

The only scary thing is what we’re going to do to your girlfriend when we find her 

Malachai was still out there, now with full run of the South Side and Hiram seemed to be out to destroy everything that made Riverdale good. He swore to himself he would never let Malachai hurt Betty while he still breathed. 

“Jug, you okay?” Betty asked as she pulled back slightly, getting a look at his face in the hallway light. “You’re shaking.”

Jughead hadn’t realized his anger at himself and Malachai were getting to him. He was here for Betty, she needed him. He smiled as he kissed the top of her forehead. “Sorry, I’m fine.”

She gave him a knowing look as they started for her bedroom. “I don’t think any of us are really fine.” Betty said as she quietly shut her bedroom door, joining Jughead on her bed a moment later. 

“But we’re both here, safe, for the moment.” Jughead said as he scooted close to her. He noticed she was covering her palms with the sleeve of her sweater and he quickly reached out to grab them before she could stop him.

“Juggie, no!” Betty protested, but his strong, rough hands were already holding on to hers and she sighed deeply when he looked at the damage she had done.

“Oh Betty…” Jughead said as his eyes fell onto her moon shaped scarred and bleeding palms. He had seen her palms bad, but this was worse than usual. Her talk with her dad had taken its toll on her. He brought her hands up to his lips and kissed them gently.

“Confronting him was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do.” Betty said as she squeezed Jughead’s hands. “These last few days I have felt like everything my dad had done was my fault because I had failed to see the monster he really was.” Jughead scooted closer, wrapping and arm around Betty as she leaned into him. “And I was, am, afraid that that darkness will consume me.”

“Betty,” Jughead whispered, “you are nothing like your father. We all have darkness inside of us, it’s what we do with it that matters.”

Betty nodded her head as she quickly wiped a tear away. “I know. After I left I felt a weight lift off of my chest, but knowing what he did to my family is still tearing me apart.”

“Well,” Jughead said as he wiped another tear from her cheek with his thumb, “you don’t have to go through it alone. I will never abandon you.”

Betty smiled as she leaned over and kissed him on the lips. “I know. That’s why I love you.”

“I love you too.” Jughead said as he pulled her into another kiss, this one deeper and more passionate. One thing led to another and soon they were wrapped together under the pink sheets of Betty’s bed, two bodies becoming one. Betty loved the way Jughead bent to her will, begging her for more as she nipped little kisses on his neck. Jughead would never get over how soft Betty’s skin felt under his fingertips as he traced her curves. They were made for each other.

“So where do we go from here?” Betty asked as they cuddled together in her bed. Jughead had been running his fingers through her hair absentmindedly and was slightly taken aback by her question.

“Uh, do you mean like college?” He asked. With all the things that had gone on, thoughts of the future past Riverdale had been forgotten for the moment.

“No, I mean with Veronica’s dad, the Ghoulies, and everyone else he has rounded up to take Riverdale down.” Betty said as she propped herself up, her blue eyes piercing Jughead.

“Honestly,” Jughead said as he ran a hand through his messy black hair, “I don’t know. Hiram Lodge is a powerful entity and he has a powerful army behind him.”

Betty was quiet for a moment, “It seems like every time we take down one evil force another, more powerful one takes its place.”

Jughead had to agree with her. First there had been Clifford Blossom, a man who had murdered his own son because he threated to expose the family drug business. Then there was the Black Hood. The Angel of Death who had swept through Riverdale cleansing it of its sins. Now it was Hiram Lodge. Destroying Riverdale from the inside out.

“I know I’m not typically the positive one,” Jughead said, catching a raised eyebrow from Betty, “but we have defeated all of Riverdale’s monsters so far.”

“Are you saying that we actually stand a chance at winning?” Betty asked, somewhat seriously.

Jughead just shrugged his shoulders. “The odds seemed stacked higher against us this time, but as long as we’re together, along with Archie and Veronica, then I think we stand a pretty damn good chance.” 

His lips curved into a smile as he finished his sentence. Betty laughed and pulled him into another kiss before they settled into her bed, their arms wrapped around each other. Betty felt safe in Jughead’s arms and while she knew that outside of these walls they were far from safe, she knew that Jughead was right. Together they would save Riverdale.

-

Jughead couldn’t remember how he had gotten to the edge of Sweet Water River, but there he was, walking the river’s edge as the sun was just beginning to set. Jughead felt his stomach twist in knots, his senses heightened as he felt like something was wrong. 

“Juggie?” 

Jughead sharply turned and spotted Betty standing a few feet away from him, on the edge of the forest. There were tears pouring down her face, but she didn’t move closer to him.

“Betty, what’s wrong?”

Before he could take a step towards her shadows shifted from behind the trees and Jughead felt his heart drop into his stomach. Malachai moved from behind Betty, a smile on his face as the other Ghoulies stepped in sight.

“Care to go for a swim, Jughead?” Malachai asked as Penny stepped out from the other side of Betty.

Jughead remained frozen as they circled Betty like she was their prey. Her wide eyes were fixed on Jughead and he wished, more than anything he could go to her, but he knew if he moved so would Malachai and Penny.

“She’s cute.” Penny said as she admired Betty, her fingers running over Betty’s shoulders. “Real pretty face.”

“Don’t touch her.” Jughead said defensively as his boy tensed. He was trying to figure out how to get himself and Betty out of here safely. If he could get to her they could escape into the river.

“I told you the only scary thing is what we were going to do to your girlfriend when we found her.” Malachai said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife.

Betty started to move away, but Penny grabbed on to her, keeping her from running. Jughead ran, reaching out for Betty, but a group of Ghoulies latched onto him, preventing him from getting to Betty.

“Let her go!” Jughead yelled as he fought against the Ghoulies hold, earning him a few punches to the gut.

“No! Don’t hurt him.” Betty yelled through her tears as Jughead doubled over in pain. It was Betty’s pained yells that kept him standing.

“It’s almost cute how much you two care about each other.” Penny said as she smiled at Jughead. “Do you think you’ll still love her after we cut up that pretty face?”

“Jughead!” Betty cried as Malachai moved closer, the knife raised high in his hand.

“Betty!” Jughead yelled as he tried to fight off everyone that was holding on to him. He needed to get to Betty, he needed to protect her. “Betty!”

Betty’s screamed filled the forest by Sweet Water River, drowning out Jughead’s owns.

-

“Juggie, wake up!” Betty said as Jughead yelled in his sleep. She grabbed onto him, her hands holding his face gently as she tried to wake him. “It’s okay, you’re safe. Come back to me.” She said as a few tears slipped down her cheeks.

Jughead heard her soft voice breaking through his nightmare and he followed it, opening his eyes to see her beautiful face looking down at him. He felt tears fall from the corner of his eyes as he reached up and placed a gentle hand on her cheek.

“Sorry,” he said with a shaky laugh, “did I wake you?” He let her pull him into her arms as he tried to shake off the terrible memory of her screams and the smirk on Malachai’s face.

“What happened? Are you okay?” Betty asked.

“Just your usual nightmare type stuff.” Jughead said in a attempt of humor.

“Jughead,” Betty said in a chastising tone, “you’re shaking again, just like you were when you first got her.”

He knew he couldn’t lie to Betty, she saw right through him. He was supposed to be here to comfort her, not the other way around. He told her about how Malachai and Penny had been recent visitor’s in his nightmares, without giving her all the details. He didn’t want to think about them hurting Betty. He would not let that happen.

“We’re here for each other. I’m not going to abandon you either.” Betty said as gave him a sweet kiss.

“I know.” Jughead said with a smile. 

They sunk back down into Betty’s bed, feeling safe and warm in each other’s embrace. Whatever happened they would get through it together.

**Author's Note:**

> My first Riverdale fic! Can you tell how much I love Bughead??? I just finished season 2 (yay Netflix) and I just needed to write a cute piece about my favorite couple. Hopefully I kept them in character. Also, I have a soft spot for FP and Alice oops :)
> 
> Let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading!


End file.
